16 hours ago, Edwin Cameron said:

They deserve what they get, it's the era of cctv and all soughts of magic technology,my oh my they need to come into the 21st century if they don't want to turn into Bangkok taxi drivers.

They deserve a lot more than they will get. Because they will not be punished except an announcement for the media to dribble over.

1 minute ago, richard_smith237 said:

'Are you saying' that he should stop riding a motorcycle because police were not clear about the fine they levied on him a check-point ???

Well, when I stopped banging my head against the wall, the pain stopped straight away!

 

Alternatively the issue of credibility arises, either that or perhaps the poster has a unique physical composition comprising RTP magnetic qualities.

4 minutes ago, Blumpie said:

Im not at all sorry to write this but if you think that paying off police anywhere in the world who are trying to extort you is no big deal you've either been dropped on your head six times too many or your brain is pickled from your 20 beers every day living in the LOS.  

 

This is yet another huge black eye for Thailand.  I mean come on, the place is completely corrupt.  News stores like this get around.  

Yet it's better than dealing with police in Mexico.....you can keep from being made o disappear here 

21 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

Then please do so and post your findings so that we all may understand.

some will never understand ????

2 hours ago, Thailand said:

Interesting read from other sources, CCTV cab drivers statements etc. Maybe not such a credible story from the Taiwanese "actress"? We will see.

 

1 hour ago, nigelforbes said:

As poster @Thailandmentioned above, the evidence from CCTV and other sources does not seem to support her claim...

What CCTV? I must have missed that. Where was it posted?

4 minutes ago, Puccini said:

2 hours ago, Thailand said:

Interesting read from other sources, CCTV cab drivers statements etc. Maybe not such a credible story from the Taiwanese "actress"? We will see.

 

1 hour ago, nigelforbes said:

As poster @Thailandmentioned above, the evidence from CCTV and other sources does not seem to support her claim...

What CCTV? I must have missed that. Where was it posted?

There was apparently CCTV from the Chinese Embassy which was ‘reviewed’ by the Police. 

In the Bangkok Post it was reported that the CCTV footage did not show that the Taiwanese lady was ‘taken out of view of the CCTV and forced to hand over money’.

 

The initial GrabDriver was there for an hour before he left, the group apparently took a taxi from the check point area after they were ‘processed’. 

 

Why did this take at least an hour ????......  They were being extorted and arguing the cost. 

 

IF there was no extortion, the stop would not have taken more than 5 mins.

 

Was the CCTV footage clear enough (how far away was it) to show that nothing was exchanged ? (i.e. no money / no 27,000 baht). 

 

 

4 minutes ago, Puccini said:

 

What CCTV? I must have missed that. Where was it posted?

In the newspaper whose name must not be spoken, yesterday. But not the CCTV footage itself, just the report that it had been located, reviewed and what was seen.

1 minute ago, richard_smith237 said:

There was apparently CCTV from the Chinese Embassy which was ‘reviewed’ by the Police. 

In the Bangkok Post it was reported that the CCTV footage did not show that the Taiwanese lady was ‘taken out of view of the CCTV and forced to hand over money’.

 

The initial GrabDriver was there for an hour before he left, the group apparently took a taxi from the check point area after they were ‘processed’. 

 

Why did this take at least an hour ????......  They were being extorted and arguing the cost. 

 

IF there was no extortion, the stop would not have taken more than 5 mins.

 

Was the CCTV footage clear enough (how far away was it) to show that nothing was exchanged ? (i.e. no money / no 27,000 baht). 

 

 

I hope you're never a juror at my trial anytime, filling in the gaps in factual evidence and concluding a guilty verdict, is not a desirable trait.

8 minutes ago, Puccini said:

 

What CCTV? I must have missed that. Where was it posted?

The CCTV footage has not been published, until  it is, in an unedited version, with time stamps, the RTP are on the hook?  We will see?

18 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

22 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

'Are you saying' that he should stop riding a motorcycle because police were not clear about the fine they levied on him a check-point ???

Well, when I stopped banging my head against the wall, the pain stopped straight away!

 

Alternatively the issue of credibility arises, either that or perhaps the poster has a unique physical composition comprising RTP magnetic qualities.

Its 3 stops in what... 10 years (at a guess)... hardly painful.

 

I’ve been stopped too....  its just the way things are here - hardly worth it to stop driving / riding, we just roll with it.... and when a topic on here pops up we write our experience. 

 

The we have some tool suggesting.... ‘credibility’... or better still... those who would write, ‘if you can’t handle it go home’ (or something similar).... 

 

Its not a stretch at all to believe that someone gets pulled over and fined without knowing exactly what the fine was for.... Infact, over the years there have been loads of posts about such activity on this forum, guys have even posted their ticket for others to translate. 

 

I assume your Thai is perfect and you can read Thai perfectly and would understand every ticket ????

... or the keyboard warrior in you will now state that you’d ‘demand’ to know what the fine is and stand your ground if it was false.... Others are just ok with with paying 200 baht and not wasting any more of their time. 

 

4 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

I hope you're never a juror at my trial anytime, filling in the gaps in factual evidence and concluding a guilty verdict, is not a desirable trait.

If the RTP do not publish the CCTV footage for whatever reason, now we all know they have it then its going to look very bad for them?

2 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Its 3 stops in what... 10 years (at a guess)... hardly painful.

Good guess (actually 14 years), but I no longer go to town much.

My pal who arrived in September when he retired has been stopped on the moat in CM 3x in 3 months.

Usually at the regular stop and shakedown opposite Hom Coffee on Moon Muang.

4 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

I hope you're never a juror at my trial anytime, filling in the gaps in factual evidence and concluding a guilty verdict, is not a desirable trait.

We'll I’m clearly bias against the BiB in this case - that much is obvious...  I’m looking for reasons to think otherwise and nothing stands out at all.

 

Can you point me to any ‘factual evidence’ because all I’ve read on this is the news paper reports, many of which seems to contradict another.

 

Please feel free to correct any of what I wrote if you have more factual information as you did earlier on in the thread  (when it turns out they had not been taken to a police station and earlier reports were false). 

 

The GrabDriver states he was there for an hour before he left (True of false) ?

 

Why would they take an hour at the check-point ? - can you think of a reason other than extortion ?

 

It would be interesting to see the CCTV footage and identify what actually can be made out. I’m skeptical that the BiB would have reviewed this without any bias.  IF they were there for over an hour, I’m skeptical that the BiB even looked at the footage for that long !!

 

 

 

3 hours ago, thailand49 said:

The reason for these stories are their own doing.  During the math if one was a betting man you put your money? 

Like investments although no guarantee of the future example if a individual has a drug habit sent to rehab a number of time we can take a guess as to the road they will take. 

Thus RTP,  their reputation like their driving death can't be fixed within you can't have corrupt investigation their own!

 

No Thai in their right mind running for office would compaign to clean up once and for all once they get popular it would be like digging their own grave. 

 

If they ever allow a foreigner to run I declared I've already got a foot in the hole????

 

As soon as a new police commander is in place and tries to change there swiftly transferred. 

2 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Its 3 stops in what... 10 years (at a guess)... hardly painful.

 

I’ve been stopped too....  its just the way things are here - hardly worth it to stop driving / riding, we just roll with it.... and when a topic on here pops up we write our experience. 

 

The we have some tool suggesting.... ‘credibility’... or better still... those who would write, ‘if you can’t handle it go home’ (or something similar).... 

 

Its not a stretch at all to believe that someone gets pulled over and fined without knowing exactly what the fine was for.... Infact, over the years there have been loads of posts about such activity on this forum, guys have even posted their ticket for others to translate. 

 

I assume your Thai is perfect and you can read Thai perfectly and would understand every ticket ????

... or the keyboard warrior in you will now state that you’d ‘demand’ to know what the fine is and stand your ground if it was false.... Others are just ok with with paying 200 baht and not wasting any more of their time. 

 

If posters are happy doing those things they shouldn't complain and shouldn't refer to them derogatorily as shake down or similar, they agreed to the transaction, that's their prerogative. 

 

What would I do? That's my business but I certainly am not in the habit of handing out money to anyone, just because they say they want it, police or not.

 

I understand I'm in the minority in this debate but I don't feel like being part of a herd of people, some of whom don't always tell the truth or supply the complete picture. This is especially true when my experience over many years is different from yours and others.

 

And don't refer to me as a tool again, just because I don't agree with your point!

 

 

4 minutes ago, mikeymike100 said:

If the RTP do not publish the CCTV footage for whatever reason, now we all know they have it then its going to look very bad for them?

Umm, I don't think so. I'm pretty sure if I was law enforcement I wouldn't publish, just because a herd of people who don't like the police in any country, especially foreigners, wants me to. It sets a bad precedent.

4 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

We'll I’m clearly bias against the BiB in this case - that much is obvious...  I’m looking for reasons to think otherwise and nothing stands out at all.

 

Can you point me to any ‘factual evidence’ because all I’ve read on this is the news paper reports, many of which seems to contradict another.

 

Please feel free to correct any of what I wrote if you have more factual information as you did earlier on in the thread  (when it turns out they had not been taken to a police station and earlier reports were false). 

 

The GrabDriver states he was there for an hour before he left (True of false) ?

 

Why would they take an hour at the check-point ? - can you think of a reason other than extortion ?

 

It would be interesting to see the CCTV footage and identify what actually can be made out. I’m skeptical that the BiB would have reviewed this without any bias.  IF they were there for over an hour, I’m skeptical that the BiB even looked at the footage for that long !!

 

 

 

Richard, you may be ex law enforcement, I am not, I just go by the latest press reports and cast my opinion accordingly....no apologies if that doesn't pass your sniff test for the Sherlock award! Latest in the media I have read is that CCTV favors the police, I'll wait for the next press release and see what I think then but in the meantime I'm not playing Watson to your Sherlock.

11 minutes ago, mikeymike100 said:

The CCTV footage has not been published, until  it is, in an unedited version, with time stamps, the RTP are on the hook?  We will see?

If as was reported the video was reviewed and nothing to see then why in the world would the RTP not have had a big press conference, release the unedited video , make a big deal out of it and prove the RTP did nothing wrong?  Any PR company in the world would advise them to get that video out there asap and kill the negative story quickly.  Me thinks there is something on that video that is "troubling". 

 

Prove me and all the other suspicious people around the world wrong and release it now and have the gal shown to be the liar/conwoman/click bait pile that she is being accused of being.  I am sure the taiwanese media would be all over it.

3 hours ago, herfiehandbag said:

I was "shaken down" for a minor infringement several years ago, ( tax sticker on car was three days out of date). The initial asking price was B1000. My daughter was with me. She looks Western but Thai is her first language. As soon as she spoke the price went to B500, then B250.

 

Same thing... I actually got out and started arguing (light heartedly of course), certain that my tax was expiring in Nov...  ( I couldn’t read the Thai month on the tax disk )...  this was before Google Translate worked well from a photo.

 

Sent the photo to my Wife who told me the tax had expired 3 months ago !!!...  Damn !!!... 

 

I laughed, told the Policeman he was correct...  got back in the car, handed him 100 baht. 

He was still staying "no 200 baht" while I was driving off !!!... 

 

Mistakes happen and I like the fact that the mistake didn’t cost me £1000 (or 5x the tax) as it would in the UK - the tax on my last UK car was £480 ( so that fine would have been £1920 ) - but, when the stakes get that high we don’t make such mistakes. 

I have no idea when the tax is due up on the my Motorcycle or my Car..  Its something I’ll have to remember to double check !!!

 

 

My paint here.... We all don’t mind the corruption we see as being harmless... i.e. paying a small ‘on the spot fine’ when our tax is out of date.... BUT... getting our taxi stopped at night and searched in the hope that the BiB can find something, a viagra tablet, a vape pen, or try and fine us for not carrying a passport..... it all crosses a line....

 

 

 

 

18 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Good guess (actually 14 years), but I no longer go to town much.

My pal who arrived in September when he retired has been stopped on the moat in CM 3x in 3 months.

Usually at the regular stop and shakedown opposite Hom Coffee on Moon Muang.

Your mate's a slow learner it seems, almost everyone knows about the police bike checks on the moat, you should have told him. And if you did, he should have taken the steps to fix the problem, my guess is helmet and/or license.

9 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

My paint here.... We all don’t mind the corruption we see as being harmless... i.e. paying a small ‘on the spot fine’ when our tax is out of date.... BUT... getting our taxi stopped at night and searched in the hope that the BiB can find something, a viagra tablet, a vape pen, or try and fine us for not carrying a passport..... it all crosses a line....

 

 

 

 

As a general principle, I agree! Although in this particular case I did read one story that said the lady in question was vaping in front of them, whether or not that is true and correct, I don't know.

15 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Same thing... I actually got out and started arguing (light heartedly of course), certain that my tax was expiring in Nov...  ( I couldn’t read the Thai month on the tax disk )...  this was before Google Translate worked well from a photo.

 

Sent the photo to my Wife who told me the tax had expired 3 months ago !!!...  Damn !!!... 

 

I laughed, told the Policeman he was correct...  got back in the car, handed him 100 baht. 

He was still staying "no 200 baht" while I was driving off !!!... 

 

Mistakes happen and I like the fact that the mistake didn’t cost me £1000 (or 5x the tax) as it would in the UK - the tax on my last UK car was £480 ( so that fine would have been £1920 ) - but, when the stakes get that high we don’t make such mistakes. 

I have no idea when the tax is due up on the my Motorcycle or my Car..  Its something I’ll have to remember to double check !!!

 

 

My paint here.... We all don’t mind the corruption we see as being harmless... i.e. paying a small ‘on the spot fine’ when our tax is out of date.... BUT... getting our taxi stopped at night and searched in the hope that the BiB can find something, a viagra tablet, a vape pen, or try and fine us for not carrying a passport..... it all crosses a line....

 

 

 

 

Totally agree with you!

I didn't realize a 'viagra tablet' was illegal?

Just now, nigelforbes said:

As a general principle, I agree! Although in this particular case I did read one story that said the lady in question was vaping in front of them, whether or not that is true and correct, I don't know.

Thats something I can easily believe....  So many tourists and people vaping in the streets, no one knows its actually illegal.... 

... Actually, I don’t think vaping itself is illegal, I think it is the importation of vaping products which is. 

Thus - it could be argued that the lady was not doing anything illegal by vaping (I’m not certain of that though). 

 

The question still remains: What were the group [Taiwan tourists] doing out of the car in the first place ?

 

What possible reason would the police have for getting them out of the car and searching them? 

What grounds for a search was there? what suspicion of criminal activity did they have?

 

IMO - the answers to these questions are obvious....   the BiB were harassing tourists knowing they could extort them for money... I suspect the BiB were really hoping to find drugs so they could have their pay-day....   when that didn’t happen they were extorted for something ridiculous. 

 

 

 

4 hours ago, herfiehandbag said:

I was "shaken down" for a minor infringement several years ago, ( tax sticker on car was three days out of date). The initial asking price was B1000. My daughter was with me. She looks Western but Thai is her first language. As soon as she spoke the price went to B500, then B250.

 

 

4 hours ago, nigelforbes said:

That's not a shake down, you were in violation of the law. But the daughter part was nice, bless her.

Well, the 75% reduction in the "fine" levied and the informal nature of its application suggests at the very least an "irregular" process, wouldn't you say?

2 minutes ago, mikeymike100 said:

Totally agree with you!

I didn't realize a 'viagra tablet' was illegal?

I'm not sure it is anymore... 

 

But.. ‘back in the day’  (about 15 years ago or so) there used to be frequent reports on this forum of guys getting searched at Ekammai bus station before taking the bus to Pattaya..... 

 

... the BiB, obviously profiling single middle aged to older men, would go through belongings looking for Viagra (or looking for anything) and when finding Viagra they’d fine the unsuspecting playa...  plenty of whom would then come onto this forum and complain about it. 

 

 

One example here... 

https://aseannow.com/topic/303398-beware-police-at-ekkamai-bus-station/

 

 

3 minutes ago, herfiehandbag said:

 

Well, the 75% reduction in the "fine" levied and the informal nature of its application suggests at the very least an "irregular" process, wouldn't you say?

Not really, it's SOP. It's typical that the fine is discounted to half of what it is supposed to be because the fine for a farang is nearly always double what it is for a local. I don't know if it's still there but there used be a board in the CM police station with the amounts on, in two columns, local and foreigner. That's the way it is, you got the local discount, well done.

44 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Same thing... I actually got out and started arguing (light heartedly of course), certain that my tax was expiring in Nov...  ( I couldn’t read the Thai month on the tax disk )...  this was before Google Translate worked well from a photo.

 

Sent the photo to my Wife who told me the tax had expired 3 months ago !!!...  Damn !!!... 

 

I laughed, told the Policeman he was correct...  got back in the car, handed him 100 baht. 

He was still staying "no 200 baht" while I was driving off !!!... 

 

Mistakes happen and I like the fact that the mistake didn’t cost me £1000 (or 5x the tax) as it would in the UK - the tax on my last UK car was £480 ( so that fine would have been £1920 ) - but, when the stakes get that high we don’t make such mistakes. 

I have no idea when the tax is due up on the my Motorcycle or my Car..  Its something I’ll have to remember to double check !!!

 

 

My paint here.... We all don’t mind the corruption we see as being harmless... i.e. paying a small ‘on the spot fine’ when our tax is out of date.... BUT... getting our taxi stopped at night and searched in the hope that the BiB can find something, a viagra tablet, a vape pen, or try and fine us for not carrying a passport..... it all crosses a line....

 

 

 

 

I along with many Thai's consider the Bt 100/200 here and there as harmless, but outright corruption is not really accepted, not that the average person can do anything about it. 

If you have been in Thailand for some time or long enough you will know whose telling the truth...

6 minutes ago, chuang said:

If you have been in Thailand for some time or long enough you will know whose telling the truth...

Yet we still get those utterly dumb-a$$ comments from posters who’ll state things such as...

... "I’ve been driving here for 20 years and have never been stopped"....   as if they are suggesting that all the other first hand examples are from people who for whatever reason are lying and only their experience counts !!!.... 

1 hour ago, Artisi said:

some will never understand ????

And some never want to understand.